1. Field of the Invention
The following generally relates to an apparatus, system, and method for more accurately measuring chopped wood, and for subsequently delivering such more accurately measured chopped wood to a customer. More specifically, the following relates to an apparatus, system, and method for measuring, and subsequently delivering, a fractional part, whole and/or multiples of a quantity (e.g., a cord) of chopped wood, such as firewood, in accordance with a standard measure.
2. Description of Related Art
Chopped wood, specifically firewood is usually measured, priced by and sold based on a given quantity. In many parts of the United States, the unit used for measuring a quantity of firewood is a cord (or full cord or firewood cord). The wood is typically cut into logs of sizes based on the firewood cord. One firewood cord is equivalent to a wood pile of 4 feet-long logs stacked 8 feet wide and 4 feet high (8′×4′×4′) or 128 cubic feet. Similarly, a one-half firewood cord is equivalent to 64 cubic feet.
In some areas, a unit called a face cord may also be used rather than a firewood cord. However, the face cord is not a legally defined unit and may vary from one area to another. In Europe and Canada, firewood sales are based on a unit known as a stere. One stere is equivalent to one cubic meter, which is approximately 0.276 cords. In Australia, firewood is sold by the tonne. A tonne is a measurement of weight and not of volume, as with a stere or a firewood cord. The conversion from cord to tonne will depend on the density of the wood, as some woods are heavier than others per unit of volume.
Generally, chopped wood, specifically firewood, is used as a fuel and may be stored or transported in large quantities at cutting stations, warehouses, storage sites, customer's premises, and so forth. Typically, the firewood may be stored and/or loaded into a vehicle by using buckets. The buckets may be available in various shapes and sizes. Further, the firewood may be transported from one location to another for delivery. For example, the firewood may be loaded from a cutting station and delivered to the customer's premises.
The customer may require a measured quantity or amount of firewood. As per the regulations of weights-and-measures authorities of many countries or states, the seller of the firewood should give the customer some kind of assurance that the quantity delivered to the customer is substantially accurate (i.e. within tolerances sanctioned or approved by the weight-and-measures authority). Therefore, the firewood should be substantially accurately measured before delivering it to the customer. Measuring exact quantities of firewood (or wood) as per the weights-and-measures office of a jurisdiction can be a challenging task, as the measurement system followed for measuring the firewood may differ depending on the jurisdictions.
Firewood material vendors may be unaware of existing standards, and may knowingly or inadvertently short the customer a substantially accurate delivery, knowing that the consumer likely will accept the vendor's word for a substantially accurate delivery. Customers may have no way to verify the accuracy of the delivery quantity. Current apparatuses and methods for measuring quantities of firewood are not accurate.
The firewood may be stored in many ways, such as in stacks or piles of wood, or under the roof. In a stack, logs of firewood (or wood) are placed next to and on top of each other, forming a line the width of the logs. For delivery of the firewood at a customer's premises, loading and unloading of the firewood in a vehicle may be done manually by hand or by using some loading systems. However, existing loading systems may not be able to measure the quantity of the firewood or wood to be transported. In addition, manual loading and unloading of wood into a vehicle may be time consuming and may require a lot of effort. Furthermore, as explained above, the customer may not be sure that the amount of firewood delivered is measured accurately. The customer may require some kind of assurance regarding the accuracy of the quantity of firewood delivered.
The loading systems broadly include vehicles such as “compact track loaders” and “skid steer loaders”. Compact track loaders are similar to skid steer loaders but generally refer to those vehicles having a dedicated track system for ground engagement. The different types of compact track loaders include multi-terrain loaders, all surface loaders, and all season vehicles. Exemplary compact track loaders are available from Takeuchi, Bobcat Company, and ASV Inc., an affiliate of Caterpillar.
Another type of compact loader commonly available is generally referred to as an all-wheel steer loader, and is available from Bobcat Company. Compact loaders are available from numerous companies including Bobcat Company, JCB, Case, New Holland, Gehl, Caterpillar, John Deere, Takeuchi, ASV, and Daewoo.
Skid steer loaders generally refer to those vehicles having wheels and tires, or having wheels and tires with tracks installed around the wheels and tires that steer as a result of the tires or tracks skidding. A skid-steer-compatible vehicle (e.g., a wheel loader, tractors, tele-handlers, and the like) may be compatible with a skid steer loader at least by reason of having a compatible quick connect system.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,997,667 assigned on its face to Skid Mor Development LLC, discloses an apparatus for material handling and a method for operating the same. The method includes loading material into a bucket attached to a loader assembly provided on the material handling apparatus, moving the bucket to a position over the dump box, and opening the bucket to cause material to drop from the bucket into the dump box. However, the functionality of the material handling apparatus is limited to loading and unloading of the material and cannot be used to measure the amount of material such as firewood.
Thus, there exists a need for an apparatus and method for more accurately measuring firewood and/or subsequent delivery of the more accurately measured quantity of firewood.